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We had half a dozen surveys all with varying degrees of pointlessness, everyone who walked up my drive carrying a pen and paper cost £1200 minimum.

Ouch !! So 203x203x46 shot blasted and painted is ~£35/m ex VAT. It comes in lengths up to 12m, so even using 8m lengths you’ve got a cost of around £2450 so you’ve another £2000 for connection plates ..?? I would shop around - £3k would be my target.

Here to keep an eye on @dnb who is building our SIPs house.

Sounds daft maybe....but I would get an example survey copy the format and then complete it for your site....unless they say it should be carried out by a person with a specific qualification? If its a suitably qualified person then I don't see why you can't do it yourself.

If you already own the site you should check for relevant tree preservation orders, or if you are in a conservation area, if not get the site cleared to how you want it before putting in an application or getting other surveys done.

How big is the site ..?? And where are you in the UK..? By “young” you need to define size at 1.5m above ground as below 75mm diameter it is not a tree and can be removed without notice. Above that and it is classed as a tree and has to be noted. Large trees would take no more than an hour to size and inspect - standard report etc and any hedgerows of interest and the lot should be done and wrapped up in half a day and written up so £5-700 should be easily the going rate.

A & A Insulation Service Ltd Unit G4, 5 The Willowford, Treforest, Pontypridd CF37 5YL 01443 209585 https://maps.app.goo.gl/U8NUvPn2R1jRg3mB8 I think it's the place. Huge warehouse full of seconds.

sand is £1.80 for 25kg... you need 10 bags, that’s change of £20... Other alternative is that glass is quite heavy, so if you knew anyone with say, some walk on units, they could be used for counterbalance ..??

Could do . But I’ll do it properly so everyone thinks I’m skilled !!

I'm thinking rather than take your boards off just cut to fit and stick on a bit of tanking membrane. There's a pick somewhere of one @Nickfromwales did. Edit: Found it!

Thanks all for the feedback. My other half is against shutters, and I don't think external shutters or fabric would fly in the neighbourhood, we are seen as radical but opting for a grey roof tile. We also seek super low maintenance, external shutters probably have a fair bit of that to keep them in good condition? It is possible I don't have a future solar gain overheating issue. If it is very similar costs to apply an aftermarket film later vs. the option of adding solar glass now (around £10/m2) and has good durability to the elements (+10/20yrs without deterioration), then waiting and seeing is obviously the way forward. I have the impression films were more expensive than that.

fine provided you can secure frame down enough at top -- rawl bolts or it will topple over- pack up base so you can get fridge under it

Ah ! Was going to use ct1 - will make a mental note not to . 6 months later I’ll forget and stick it on with ct1 . 2 years later when I need to remove the plate you can link to this thread .

Not what I heard... As Dave says. Tile neatly cut. I can get all the necessary tools to dismantle, remove cartridges etc Horseshoe of silicone, open at the bottom:

There's a lot of issues to unpick there tbf! Surely if you're going to be pm on the project then things like the icf order and delivery will be in your responsibility anyway? Same with the windows and doors, you can negotiate prices with a supplier if you are the pm... Sound's like you need to give them a very defined scope of what you want and don't want?

But that puts the compressor, a large source of the noise, inside the house.

Hi everyone, Mike from North Wales here, Gods own country. Am looking at possibility of a self build hopefully not in the distant future Seen one or two plots but must admit very rare around where i live. Its been something ive wanted to do for nearly 30 years and am only now in a position financially to possibly do. Hopefully will happen soon. Loving the look of the site and seen some great self builds. I tilt my hat to your fantastic achievements.

4k a week for how long? what happens if they go over time? another 4k? 5% is standard retention, it's not a huge amount on a small job but it's there to address snagging rather than as an incentive to stay on site! 4k a week is pretty good incentive tbh!! What you should have done is set up payments based on progress, paid after that stage is complete but you're never going to get a contractor to sign up to those terms 6 weeks in to a gravy train situation. How are you tracking any changes or additions to the costs? Did they give you an over all cost for the project? I would now be looking to reduce the weekly payment to say 2k per week and then a bonus at stages, that way the contractor keeps a cashflow and you have less risk that it's not going to get finished - but might be a hard sell! Start at 1k a week and negotiate hard!

I have to agree with all of the above, We are also new to self build and presently looking for a plot. My girlfriend saw the news regarding planning changes and asked me the same question. Sadly it appears it will just take some red tape out of larger developments and do nothing to help self or small builders. Self employment shouldn't be a problem unless you are not showing any real regular income. I have pretty much been self employed since i was 20 (now 55). Last 28 years a director and 50% share holder and im still classed as self employed when it comes to mortgages and loans etc. Dont give up ... if someone has the passion and determination to do something, ways open up for them.

Yep exactly as you said it, transfer points over to another post banged in the ground, put a little fence around it so you don’t knock it over later, do it then re check it setting dumpy up in another location just to be sure.

95% of the showers I tile are moister board without any kind of waterproofing kit Which are absolutely fine If you want to go down the route of backer boards Gypsum now do a backer board that out performs Hardy It’s lighter easy to use and CHEAPER

You are going for the same combination as us. I have used dulux diamond Matt in the past & didn’t like the sheen. The boarders also mentioned that flat Matt is a much more forgiving finish.

Pictures might help? It's a box which you put in the ceiling like a smoke alarm. The cable goes in the back where you can't see it, and it gives you WiFi. You can also get waterproof ones, which if you have a big garden like me might well be worth it - my normal WiFi is rubbish at the end of the garden.

Apologies for the reply-to-self (after only 5 minutes too!) but I stumbled across a review of the Johnstones which, whilst positive, happened to mentioned some alternatives so I thought I'd throw these into the mix of options: For ceiling: Tikkurila Anti-reflex 2 at £47.40/10L: And for the walls, the Class 1 scrubable Tikkurila Optiva 3/5 at £88/10L: Again, they both sound ideal and a fair bit cheaper too...

I just started to build a three bed holiday home in Stromeferry overlooking Loch Carron. Just Completed the foundation.

Today could be your LUCKY DAY!!!!!!!!!

Pillock! Your hole in the ground, height between levels, details of adjacent walls etc. Not your imaginary friend! ?

Dimensions of my what ? ? its fecking big !

Stalking me again...?

I spoke to the home owners today. The decontamination work starts in earnest next week. Apparently there is something like a 4ft crawls space under this house. The plan is to break through an access hatch underground in the gable end supported with suitable lintels, then a team suitably suited with breathing apparatus will crawl in and start digging up the solum and removing the contaminated soil. They have admitted it it may not be possible to successfully decontaminate it this way, with worst case being the house has to be knocked down and rebuilt if this fails.

I found that putting the tiling off until 4 years after I'd laid the concrete slab i.e allowing everything to settle, prevented the finished floor from dropping..... ?